Blog 5: What am I doing to get my students ready to mainstream them into general education classrooms?

I had to think about this question and really look at what I am doing to make this happen.  I have two students that currently go to either a kindergarten general classroom twice a week for 30 minutes each day and I have a 1st grader who goes for 30 min twice a day.  My kinder loves to go and was doing well up until about the end of December and then he started to have some real behavior issues.  I spoke with the teacher and she explained what was occurring.  We agreed, he'd be sent back to my class if the behaviors started and she prompted him twice.  He needless to say, kept getting sent back. So, I sat him down one afternoon and we talked about why he was being sent back early.  He first said he didn't know and then changed his tune when I started to give examples of what he had done.
He asked what he could do so that he could go more often.  I explained he had to follow her rules in kinder as much as he follows my rules each day.  He said he didn't know the rules in the other classroom, like mine because he didn't seem them on the board.  I took a walk with him and we visited his kinder room.  I explained why we were there, the teacher said that the rules had been discussed and they had to learn them in the beginning of the year and so she had taken them down.  I then asked if I could have a copy of the rules so that I could work with him on it.  I then took and made a 3x5 card and laminated it and made a quick necklace he wears that has the four rules on it.  Each day he goes and earns a sticker from his kinder teacher for following the rules, he earns a star in my class.  If he has a star by the end of the day, my students get a treat from the treasure box before they get on the bus to go home.  Positive reinforcement goes a long way, especially if your kids are not in the same classroom day in and day out with the other gen ed students but are required to be one of them.  They need help remembering, they need modeling and sometimes manipulative's to help. No two classrooms are ever the same.
My 1st grader, has a rough time with his emotions and being able to control them when he doesn't get his way.  When I took the class in December he was being sent back to room 119 early because he would hide under tables if he didn't get his way.  I met with the teacher and asked, if him being under the table isn't causing a disruption, if he could stay, he might be able to calm himself down and continue his time.  After some reassurance that I would take the blame if something didn't go well she agreed.  After about three visits, he began to come back out from under the table and join in again without any prompt from the teacher.
I believe all teachers have good hearts and want what is best for all students.  I just believe that so many general ed teachers have so much on their plate that one more to have a "special visitor" can tip the plate at times so to speak...so to give them the tools or the knowledge that I will take the blame vs them...helps to give my kids a chance at a rewarding experience that most don't even realize how much they value.
My goal is to have all classes and teachers feel welcome, enriched, empowered and successful.  I want to create an environment where my kids can walk from my class to a gen ed class and feel confident, that they can and will be successful.  I want the gen ed kids to ask to come visit and see their friends classroom and feel welcome.  Whether in special ed or gen ed our children must feel welcome and respected and know that they can be successful.

Blog 4 Reflect my time in classroom 119 as of right now

Since starting in December of 2016 I can definitely say that we have had some highs and lows in room 119 but with all of that we are progressing in the right direction.  I am overwhelmed at times of all the study I am to complete and work at the same time but I know it will all pay off and honestly I have already begun to use quite a few processes I have been learning in room 119.  My kids are amazing to say the least.  They have each grown since taking over in December.  They are able to sit and listen to me teach, learn from what I teach and with parent proof (teacher parent conferences before Spring Break)...they are retaining it!!!

I have rearranged the classroom a few times and we now have it so that all five are sitting at one table and then transition to centers twice a day.  They enjoy centers and like to be able to complete tasks and earn choice time.

I created rules for the classroom and we recite and talk about them everyday during morning circle.  We give examples of right from wrong.  I will sometimes read a specific story based on one of the rules and they are able to identify it. I try to give consequences to choices and for the most part it works, but I do have to remind myself I am working with "pre-school level to 2nd grade level" capacity.

I am going to introduce after spring break, a puppet to help me manage circle time when I do my lessons.  I find that when I do my circle time, students get distracted, I can manage them for about 15 minutes and then their attention span has started to linger.  So, after discussing the idea with one of my mentors after seeing it on a CD from my EDU 276 class, she is letting me borrow a couple to try it out!  I am hoping with the addition of something fun, it will keep my non-verbal awake and my pre-school/k entertained (intoon) with the lesson.

I overall am truly loving my position and my students.  I feel blessed to have this opportunity and am looking forward to next year as room 119 teacher again!

Smile,
Christin

Blog 3 educationworld.com

Article: Teachers, Start Your Engines: 
Management Tips from the Pit Crew

Wow! What a great article.  Such good information of how to's and what to do's.  I definitely already do and LOVE giving each of my students a hug when they walk into the room each morning.  It sets a tone for a positive day and when I have a little kiddo that might be having a rough start, it can help change that to go into a positive direction.  I already use classical music in my morning work time for my students, but as I was thinking about it, I believe if I had a upbeat song like, Don't Worry Be Happy, SMILE, Everything is Awesome playing as they walk in each day, it will help put them in a positive, happy mood to get started. 

Asking a question while taking attendance...what a great way to review what we have been covering.  Since we take attendance twice a day we could do questions from the day before in the morning and then in the afternoon I could question what we covered in the morning! 

For my little kiddos that are late, signing a song or dancing when they are late to class would be perfect...maybe they would be a little quicker down the hall!

And the winner is....writing names and a quick little good deed of what another student see them do or if I see them do something special...great way to teach social skills in my classroom.

My current struggle:

Getting my kids to stay on task so we finish all of our centers.  I have them at 10 minutes per center but with all the going in and out for OT, speech, specials...I find it hard to get everyone thru all the centers each day.  It is a work in progress and one that I have to learn to adapt to. 

What is working:

Showing my kiddos compassion and that learning is meaningful.  Creating a positive environment where they feel respected and wanted and that they can learn and they can succeed. 

Creating a classroom that is positive and full of happiness is honestly the way I try and want to be.  Yes we have to teach and learn but if we can do it in such a way that the kids are not only learning, are happy and are learning about making good choices and treating others with respect and learning good values...I can't say that is a bad thing to spend some quality time on!!!  

Blog 2 This year what has worked and what hasn't worked in my classroom? What will I do differently?

This year in room 119 has been three months of adapting.  My class did not have any rules or consistency about it when I took it over in December 2016.  I have spent the last couple of months working on schedules, procedures and plain getting my kids to work.  I have had to take all of my lesson plans, scrap them and start a new a couple of times based on how the students reacted but we are finding our "groove" and working toward an end in mind...one that these students can follow rules, can follow a schedule.

To ask of change, yes I will make changes for next year but those changes are to have rules in place on the first day of school that will be taught and practiced the first few weeks of school.  It will be procedures for each area of the class set up and ready to be learned and practiced when school starts. A guide of lesson plans set up that can be modified if needed by student vs. having to modify the entire class. I am used to in the corporate world, having a schedule, having a plan for the entire year and to have taken over a dysfunctional classroom has been a challenge but it has brought me a lot of joy to see the kids turn it around and be productive and see their own growth and accomplishments in such a short amount of time.  I want to have a plan set up, a guide I can follow for next year.  With my classes at Rio and my continuous observing of the other adpts teachers I hope to create a win win program for next school year.